When people think of summer, some think of bronzers and some think of blushes. I’m of the latter. Blush is one of those things that makes a subtle but nice difference to your makeup look. They makes the face look more 3D, more natural and gives it a nice healthy glow. It can make you look younger, or soften a harsh look. Ever wore bold lips then thought it make the rest of your face look pasty/flat? add a hint of blush! If you search online for bold lips, you will notice that many also involves a hint of blush, not enough to distract from the lip, but enough to bring some color/shape to the rest of the face.

Can you spot the hint of blush? the couple of pics on the right does not have blush on.

If you have a very pigmented blush, you can use a stippling brush or fan brush to add a sheer layer of color, but paler blushes have the additional benefit of highlighting and brighten up the face. And I know some paler/fairer ladies have problem finding blushes that are light enough for them, so without further ado, here are my favorite super light/”highlighting” blushes….

Edward Bess Quad Royale in monte carlos

Korres Contouring Trio in Mykonos

Benefit Blush in Dandelion

Too Faced Sweetheart Blush in Candy Glow

Edward Bess Quad Royale in Monte Carlos – I bought this after taking pictures and writing up the other 3 blushes, that’s why the picture for this is by itself, but if it looks like I’m biased and making it the star of the show, that’s not wrong either, lol. I have a fondness for multicolored blush because then you can customize according to mood or season. This blush does not feel buttery but silky, and the finish is my favorite part. Most of the time when you are looking for a powder blush that’s not matte, you can see the tiny specks of shimmer particle when swatched, even if it’s undetectable on the face. In this case, the finish is a pearly glow, I cannot detect a single speck of glitter, it’s just a wonderful even glow. The lightest and darkest are the smaller section on the left, you can even use those two as highlighter/lid eyeshadow while the two middle color (bigger sections) as a highlighting blush.

Korres Contouring Trio in Mykonos – I’m pretty sure you can already see the gorgeous packaging, and it’s made of quality/sturdy plastic. The cardboard box it came in have contouring instructions printed inside, and you really can’t go wrong contouring with this since the color/effect is very subtle. I provided some detailed swatches here along with the bronzer version of the contouring trio. It have a somewhat natural/matte finish and is a warmer blush than the other two. I do like the fact you can use the top two stripes for a lighter blush and the bottom for bronzer or eyeshadow if you want.

Benefit Blush in Dandelion – This blush is more of a cool pink, buttery smooth with a natural/matte finish. I have light/med complexion and the light color brightens my face but does not add on too much onto my cheek’s natural color. I can apply this liberally/sloppily with no worry since it’s pretty sheer on me. I have the old version, the new ones have a flip open top with a mirror, much more practical me thinks. It is also the only one (of the three) that came with a brush. While most gift with purchase or included with compact brushes are scratchy miniature broomsticks, I’m happy to say these are pretty soft, dense and perfect for applying the blush whether it be contouring or buffing it in.

Too Faced Sweetheart Blush in Candy Glow – This blush is one of my friend’s favorite. I like the 3 stripes, all of which are big enough that you can customize the color if you want to. It does not feel as buttery smooth as the other two, perhaps due to the shimmer in it I think. While it doesn’t look darker than Benefit in swatches, but it emphasized/enhanced my cheek color probably due to the shimmer. And I say shimmer because it have a satin finish, but you can’t really see shimmer particles on the face. While packaging is adorable, it is made of paper and very bulky. When my package arrived, the glue on the bottom of the blush came undone, and as you can see, really, they could’ve just put it in a heartshaped pan or cut down half of the thickness.

And here are the pretty swatches, 3 colors separated on the left and together on the right for the Korres and Too Faced blushes. I swirled my finger in the pan 3 times for all of them, and applied over bare skin, no primer/foundation etc. EB and Too Faced are shimmery/glowy while Korres and Dandelion are matte.

Since my skin is naturally shiny, I prefer the slightly mattifiying effect of Benefit Dandelion to the Too Faced Sweetheart. The packaging is still kinda bulky, but Dandelion is the only one that came with a brush (and a mirror for the current version). So far it is my favorite powder blush, my favorite non-powder blush is Josie Maran Coconut Watercolor Cheek gelee. No bulky packaging, sheer buildable color, natural finish and nice whether applied with finger or foundation brush. I have to admit that I haven’t used the Korres contouring trio and Edward Bess yet because I’d hate to ruin the pretty pattern. I want to keep the pattern on this one a bit longer while I’m using up all the other blushes, altho that could take years, lol. So, what is your favorite blush?

I have light skin but some light blushes tend to disappear on me because I sometimes have my own “rosy” cheeks. The EB looks like it may work for me and I love the idea of the pearl finish instead of some shimmer. Thanks for review. 🙂

I have Benefit Dandelion and I love it! A lot of people complain that it doesn’t show up on them but it shows up on me really well! Wooooooowwww, that’s all the product that comes in that bulky heart shaped cardboard box? Shocking. Summers here so I’ve really been loving my corals and shimmery peachy pinks ( benefit coralista, thebalm hot mama, nars orgasm, mac springsheen). I got kinda behind on your blog and cant believe all the goodness that I’ve missed! Keep up the good work!

haha, I like Dandelion, too. I think it also depends on your natural coloring. If your natural flush/blush is similar to the blush then it probably won’t show up well. My cheeks are shiny and more red pink while Dandelion is a matte pastel pink, so it does actually show up and brightens. Right now I’m more concerned with using Josie Maran watercolor gelee blush before it dries up, because the powder ones can keep for years but I’m not sure if the gelee can.

And yeah, the TF sweetheart packaging is so bulky (and it’s cardboard). =/